Kagura grasped at her chest, her own nails digging into her flesh as she tried to quell the burning sensation that was ripping through her body.
"N..Naraku..." she stammered, barely able to bring her voice above a whisper, "what have you done to me?"
He sneered at her. "I have simply returned what belonged to you, Kagura. Your heart. You are now free to do as you please. I no longer hold any control over you." He moved forward and picked her up by the throat, squeezing her neck with both hands. "I truly hope that it is what you thought it would be, because I have no use for you now." His claws tore at her flesh as he shook her, laughing. "You will be all alone."
She gasped, her body shaking as her heart began to pound in her chest. The wind witch brought her hands up to try and pry his fingers from her throat, but he was holding on too tightly. She couldn't breathe, and the world began to swim before her eyes. Silently, she begged the Gods to save her, to spare her life so that she could truly experience what it was like to live, and much to her surprise, his hands loosened and she drew in a deep, rasping breath as her body fell to the floor. But the relief was short lived and she screamed out in agony as he slashed his claws across her chest, shredding her kimono and leaving deep gashes in her flesh. Kagura curled her body into a tight ball, tears flowing from her eyes.
"P..please...no more...Naraku...just let me go!"
His wicked laugh was the last thing she heard, and the last image that passed before her eyes was his tenticles, wrapping themselves around her neck and squeezing until her world went completely dark...
Kouga had been tracking Naraku's scent for days, and he knew that he was getting close. He was hungry for a kill, and couldn't think of anyone better to punish than the dark hanyou who had, indirectly, been responsible for his comrades bloody death's at the hands of the wind witch, Kagura. The wolf prince wanted nothing more than to kill Naraku's second incarnation, but as she had soundly defeated him and beaten him to within inches of his life on numerous occaisions, he had turned his attentions to her master, hoping that by taking out the hand which controlled her he could weaken Kagura and then finally exact his revenge.
He sniffed at the air. Naraku's scent was becoming stronger as he ran, and within minutes he could see the cloud of miasma which cloaked the hanyou's castle in the distance. A low growl escaped Kouga's throat and he flexed his claws, running full speed. It wouldn't be much longer now. Then he caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye which caused him to stop in his tracks and laugh. Kagura. Lying completely still, bleeding and defenseless. It seemed the wolf's day was getting better and better by the moment.
He approached her cautiously, not wanting to be caught in a trap. But when he stood over her body, he could see that the wind witch was barely breathing. Someone had gotten to her before he had had a chance, and anger rose in his chest. He knelt down next to her, and noticed much to his delight that she was still breathing, although it was shallow. He smirked. Now, he would finish her off, once and for all.
Kouga reached out roughly and shook her body, and Kagura moaned in agony. The sound brought another smile to his face, and he grabbed a fistful of her kimono, pulling her roughly into a sitting position. Kagura's eyes flew open, and fresh blood flowed from her wounds. She was shaking, and cried out when she locked eyes with him, trying desperately to pull away.
"Kouga..." she whispered, her voice laced with pain.
"Well, well, look what I've found," he said, sneering at her. "Seems to be my lucky day."
She dug her nails into his wrist as hard as she could, trying to get him to let go, but he simply tightened his grip on her clothing. "W..what do you want with me?" she asked, trying to keep her immense discomfort from coloring her words. "I am in no mood to fight with you today, wolfbrat."
"You wouldn't stand a chance against me right now, bitch. Look at you! You can barely keep your eyes open. You're so pathetic!" Kouga raised his other hand and slapped her hard across the face, and her head snapped around, the skin of her cheek slitting from the blow. "I should just kill you right now."
A strange, almost peaceful expression settled on Kagura's features. "So go ahead and get it over with. I will not fight you. What would be the point? I have no strength...just do what you will."
He was a bit surprised at her complacency. This was not what he had expected from the wind witch, and for a moment he hesitated. Was this really the way he wanted his revenge to be won? Kouga shook his head, forcing his thoughts to dissipate. He couldn't afford to be weak, not when he had what he wanted within his grasp. "You're going to regret saying that, Kagura, when you take your last breath! But don't worry, that won't be for awhile yet. I am going to make you pay for what you did to me, for killing my comrades! You will know what true pain is!"
He drew back is arm and quickly slashed his claws across her already bloody chest, relishing the feeling of her flesh ripping under his fingers. She screamed out in agony at the top of her lungs, but she continued to stare at him, tears welling up in her eyes. The sight of her crying simply enraged him more, and he dragged his claws across her stomach, tearing deeply through layers of muscle and flesh. The pain was overwhelming, and Kagura screamed again, her throat raw. She turned her face away from him, and then he suddenly let go of her kimono. The wind witch fell backwards, her skull bouncing off a rock with a sickening crack. He knelt down and hovered over her, rage and bloodlust in his eyes.
"You make me sick, Kagura, did you know that? I thought that you would at least put up a fight, but you seem ready to die. Why is that? Is Naraku's little pet not enjoying her captive existence anymore?"
She moaned, feeling more and more dizzy with every moment that passed. The ground underneath her was slick with her blood, and the wind witch knew that she would feel no more pain soon enough. With great effort, she managed to whisper a reply. "I..am...free. N..Naraku..has no..control over me!"
The wolf prince cocked his head to the side, the expression on his face changing quickly from one of rage to shock. Surely he hadn't heard her correctly; there was no way that the dark hanyou would ever have given Kagura her freedom and let her live. Then it all began to make sense. The wounds on her body when he had found her were from Naraku. Kouga laughed, a deep, soul chilling laugh that made Kagura wince and shy away in fear.
"So, the first thing you do with you freedom is choose to die, bitch? Nothing to live for now that you don't have to do that bastard's bidding?"
Kagura scowled at him as best she could. "You know nothing about me, Kouga. To die now would mean nothing...I would no longer have to feel this guilt, this remorse, over what I have done in Naraku's name."
He was stunned. He never thought that she would feel remorse for any of the things she had done, but now here she was, confessing to him that she did, indeed, feel guilt. Pain. Sorrow. He shook his head. It had to be a trick. She was simply trying to distract him. "Just shut up, Kagura! I won't feel sorry for you! I'm glad you feel guilty, you deserve it! I'm sure that your pain is nothing compared to the grief and agony I have gone through thanks to you!"
"I am not asking you to feel sorry for me, wolf. I am simply trying to...apologize..." but her sentence was cut off when she began to cough, blood pouring from her mouth.
Kouga simply stared at her for a moment, unsure of what to do. Was she truly sorry? No, she couldn't be. Nothing she could say or do would save her now that he had her within his grasp. One by one, the wolf prince flexed his claws and grabbed the wind witch by the hair, pulling her face within inches of his own. The smell of her blood mixed with her fear was intoxicating to him, and he knew that he had to act fast before he became overwhelmed. In one swift, fluid motion, he tore his claws across her throat, and blood sprayed over his body as her flesh gave way. Kagura let out a small gasp, and then went limp, simply staring up at him.
"Th..thank you..." she murmured, her eyes locking with his. "P..perhaps now...I can...be..forgiven..." A single tear ran down her cheek, and for a moment she continued to stare into his orbs, pleading with him to give her the absolution she longed for. Then her crimson orbs fell shut, and she drew in one last breath before her chest went still.
Kouga felt a strange sensation wash over him. He knew that he should be happy. Hell, he should be elated. Hadn't he been dreaming of killing her, of making her pay for slaughtering his tribe? But he wasn't. Far from it. There was something about the look she had given him that made me feel almost...regretful. Why? "What the hell...?" he whispered to himself. He swallowed the lump which had formed in his throat. Now that she had been defeated, he felt empty inside. It was almost as if he had killed something inside of him when he had delivered that final blow. Without hesitating, he carefully slid his arms underneath her lifeless body, pulling her to rest in his lap. Her blood soaked into his pelt, and the scent was enough to make him sick. He brushed her hair back out of her face and cradled her in his arms. What was he going to do now? What would he live for?
Suddenly her body convulsed, and she drew in a labored breath. He turned her body around in his lap so that she was leaning against his chest, trying to open her airway as much as possible. Then he leaned down and tore off a piece of her kimono, tying it tightly around the gaping wound he had made in her throat. The wolf prince turned the wind witch's face to his, and watched as her eyes opened slowly. She cried out, and tried to scramble away from him, but he wrapped his arms tightly around her.
"K...Kouga..." she whispered, pain lacing her voice thickly. "W...why?"
He couldn't answer her. He didn't know what to say. The wolf prince could only stare at her, his eyes burning a hole into her soul. She struggled again, desperate to get awsay from those eyes, but finally gave up, her body exhausted and unwilling to cooperate. She couldn't stop her tears now. The pain was too much. Reluctantly, she leaned against his body with all of her weight, shaking from fear and a loss of blood.
"Please...just..kill me..." she whispered, wanting the pain, all she'd ever known, to finally end. He shook his head, continuing to stare down at her with an intensity that she thought was going to cause her heart to stop. She stared back at him, and asked him again, "But...why?"
This time, he put his finger to her lips, quieting her, and shook his head. "I don't know, Kagura. I know that I should kill you, but I can't. You..." He sighed. "You're the only thing I've lived for, and I never really understood why. I thought it was to kill you...but maybe I was wrong." He smirked down at her. "Consider yourself lucky, for now. And don't make me change my mind."
Kagura smiled softly. Her body was throbbing in agony, but she felt peaceful for the first time in her existence. "Do you...forgive me..then?"
He nodded. "I guess I must, if I haven't killed you yet. Let's get out of here." He lifted her gently in his arms, holding her against his chest and ran, just as fast as before but in the opposite direction. He would figure out why he was doing this later. For now, the only thing that was important to him was getting her somewhere safe.
She brought her arms up and wrapped them around his neck, wincing in pain with every step he took. But she kept right on smiling. This was the freedom she had been looking for, the true freedom. She had been forgiven...what more could she ask for?